Aspen Institute Nonprofit Sector Research Fund Multiple Addresses (see below)

Countries Served..........................................................................

Newly Independent States

Armenia Azerbaijan Belarus Georgia	Kazakhstan Kyrgystan Moldova Russia	Tadjikistan Turkmenistan Ukraine Uzbekistan
Balkans Albania Bulgaria Romania former Yugoslavia	Baltics Estonia Latvia Lithuania	Central Europe Czech Republic Hungary Poland Slovakia

Other: ALL COUNTRIES

Program Topics............................................................................

Arts and Culture Community Development Democracy and Governance Economic and Business Development Education Environment

Health Human Rights Media and Communications NGO Development Peace and Security Social Welfare Women

Other: Public policy and nonprofits

Types of Support..........................................................................
Grant Range: $ grants up to 50,000

Annual Campaign Building and Renovation Capital Campaign Conferences and Seminars Consulting Services Continuing Support Curriculum Development Debt Reduction Emergency Funds Employee Matching Gifts Employee-related Scholarships Endowment Funds Equipment

Exchange Programs Fellowships General Operating Support Individuals Inkind Gifts Internships Land Acquisition Lectureships Loans Matching Funds Operating Budgets Professorships Program Development

Program Related Investments Publication Renovation Projects Research Scholarship Funds Scholarships to Individuals Seed Money Special Projects Student Aid Student Loans to Individuals Technical Assistance

Program Areas...............................................................................

The Fund supports studies that investigate basic proposition about the role and value of nonprofits and the tradition of philanthropy in the following areas:

1) The Role of Nonprofits and Philanthropy in Society -- supports research examining the overarching characteristics and impact of non-profit organizations and philanthropy
2) Public Policy: its impact on nonprofits and the people they serve --supports research examining nonprofits and their clients in the context of current and emerging public policy concerns, such as government budget cuts, welfare reform, etc.
3) Nonprofit Accountability, Governance and Management -- supports research which contributes to efficient, effective an accountable nonprofit practices and organizations

Restrictions and Limitations............................................................

Grants will be awarded to INSTITUTIONS AND INDIVIDUALS; proposals welcomed from academic researchers, independent scholars, nonprofit practitioners and policy analysts. Special category for doctoral research.

Awards normally not made to for-profit consulting firms. Individuals and organization that have received a grant from the Nonprofit Sector Research Fund are not eligible for additional awards until after completion of funded project.

General overhead will not be paid for university based projects; reasonable overhead for nonprofit applicants, not to exceed 15% and not covering purchase of equipment, will be considered.

Publications...................................................................................

Application Guidelines

Grant List

Annual Report

Application Procedures..................................................................

Letter of Inquiry Required
Length:
Contents: May submit a brief pre-proposal letter of inquiry for staff feedback prior to submission of a full proposal.

Application Form Provided
Proposal: Proposals must be double-spaced, not exceed 10 pages, and must include:
Requirements:
1) a one-page summary of the proposal with a brief description of the project, the main research questions to be addressed, and the types of organizations and populations to be studies
2) an explicit statement of the questions to be examined
3) a description and justification of the methodology, data collection and data analysis (All proposals must explicitly state the types of organizations or populations targeted by the research and indicate, as appropriate, the impact of demographic factors--race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, class, disability, etc.--on the questions being studied
4) a statement of the project's relevance to people and institutions interested in the field
5) a time frame and schedule for completing the project
6) a detailed budget and narrative description
7) a review of relevant literature
8) a dissemination plan that appropriately demonstrates how research findings will be communicated to practitioners, scholars, policymakers, and the general public.

Proposal attachments must include: 1) a self addressed stamped postcard to acknowledge receipt of proposal; 2) the application form with: name, address, title, affiliation and phone number of principal investigator(s), title of research project, area of interest and research methodology; 3) curriculum vitae of the principal researchers; 4) a description of the researchers' institutions (if applicable); 5) one brief sample of analytic writing, not to exceed five pages; and 6) names, addresses and telephone numbers of three persons who you have asked to send a letter of reference to the Fund on your behalf.

Doctoral applicants need to include a letter from the appropriate university official verifying doctoral status and approval of dissertation topic.

Six full copies of proposal and all attachments should be submitted.

Submission Date...........................................................................

March 2, 1998 deadline for current year; confirm with Fund for subsequent deadlines.

Funding Decision.........................................................................

Proposals are screened by staff and reviewed by three peer readers. Final decisions are made by the Council of the Nonprofit Sector Research Fund.

Appendix........................................................................................